Azrael
by PenguinKiwi
Summary: Lord Death had intercepted a strike from Asura, only, instead of nearly dying, the cloak melted away to pitch-black armor. The Bell has tolled thy name. Animeverse, pretty short oops.


Okay so first off, yeah. This isn't A Fairy's Darkness. I'm not dead, but well. If you're a fan of that fic, I'm going to be uh, not doing that. Reasons will be in the most recent chapter. Secondly, hi, I'm not dead. I do have some notes for this fic below, though.

**Notes: Anime verse, a bit of pov jumping and I'm like. 99999% sure I barely got Asuraʼs character down pat. Kinda hard when instead of being cocky at killing death, heʼs suddenly faced with Grandpa Hassan. The formatting is also rushed because I wanted to get this done as soon as possible before it vanished from my head, but since I'm not as…. Comfortable with writing Soul Eater, I just chose to one-hit kill Asura.**

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Madness wasnʼt something to have taken so lightly.

Death knew this and yet he still had underestimated the Kishin. He underestimated the madness and Asura.

Madness was something that ripped and tore, scratching and clawing at oneʼs mind, and yet he had underestimated him.

While he could agree that the both of them werenʼt in their prime anymore— Asura had wasted away and Death himself had sealed himself up and wrapped himself in so many metaphorical chains it was hard to shake them off.

He should have known better when Asura appeared so calm, despite getting smacked and beaten around.

Death had let his guard down.

And it had cost him.

It had cost him his form and almost Spiritʼs life.

Almost Kid and Azusaʼs life.

He should have known better than to not assume that Asura would resort to underhanded tactics such as firing off what remained of Vajra at the observing bunch.

And now as the smoke and dust cleared around him, he could hear his son calling for him, but he stood still, eyes closed as he let his shadowy form drift away.

Asuraʼs words had run true for once— he had been naive.

Replacing a living shadow came armor as dark as night, covered with a cloak a deep black— as deep as the shadows his other form was made up from. The rest of his form condensed as Kid shakily made his way over.

A broadsword.

"Father…?" the young Grim Reaper asked, unsure and shaky— as if he wasnʼt sure if who he was looking at was his father or not. He didnʼt blame the boy.

Death had never chosen any other form than a towering shadow with a mask, after all.

A low, resounding noise echoed across the Death Room as Asura landed, eyes narrowed and wary. The Kishin had never seen another form of Deathʼs either and knowing the brat he was most likely wondering if this was a trick of some sort.

"And who might you be, old man?" the Kishin spat, hands twitching.

There it was.

"Use your Soul Perception," Death said, voice a far cry from the cartoonish one that he had been using before and the loud ringing noise resounded across the Death Room again

"**Listen," **he said as the noise sounded a third time, **"Asura― Can you hear it, the tolling of this bell? Your luck ends here. Accept the release of your soul. That is your last chance for a peaceful slumber."**

"Accept it!?" The Kishin snarled, but the words had barely left his lips before Death vanished in a column of blue flame. Despite the heat from the intense flames, a chill crept over the Death Room. Asura felt unease.

There was no doubt that Death hadnʼt run away, but even using his Soul Percept he couldnʼt find him. He couldnʼt sense him. Despite the heat of the room he could feel a cold sweat breaking out along his skin as he looked around wildly. A flash of blue in the corner of his eye only gave the armored reaper away and Asura turned, just barely able to fire off a blast from what remained of his weapon.

A point-blank hit.

Asura smirked as he backed up and Kid bit his lip. Even if Father had armor now, he had seen what a strike from the weapon could do and a point-blank shot to the face would deal damage—

His eyes widened as the dust from the blast settled and Death still stood, tall and proud still. A flicker of hope bloomed in his chest as the black smoke gathered around him.

The chill fell over the Death Room as he stepped forward, each step seeming to generate more and more smoke and caused Asura to back up. A step for a step.

"**The knell hath tolled thy name,"** Death intoned, voice resounding across the Death Room, even more than the ringing that Kid had heard (The sound of a bell, he had realized through his bewildered awe). **"Feathers of death foreshadow your death— decapitate…."**

Kid gasped as his father vanished within the smoke. Just like last time, the Demon Pistol Meister couldnʼt feel his fatherʼs soul.

"Hey, Kid, youʼve been silent for a long time, whatʼs going on out there?" Lizʼs voice cut through his thoughts and he startled a bit.

"Apologies, Liz," he said, "But… I canʼt feel Father… Heʼs here, I know, but…" he bit his lip again before a flash of blue caught is eye. It caught Asuraʼs as well, but the Kishin couldnʼt move fast enough to get away.

**"**_**Azrael**_**, The Angel That Foretells Death! THOU SHALT FALL, FOR THE EVENING BELL HAS TOLLED THY NAME!"**

In a flash of white light and a spray of black blood, Death the Kid watched as the broadsword cleaved the Kishinʼs head from his neck.

He didn't have time to wonder where the white feathers that were drifting around them had come from as the body of the Kishin collapsed to the ground, head landing not too far away. Death planted his blade in the ground, expression even more unreadable than before as Kid tossed Liz and Patty back, the two transforming and watching as their Meister ran to his father.

"Father!" he panted as he stopped a few feet away from him. "Father…. Is it… done?" he asked softly and the armored man nodded.

"**It is done."**

Kid was silent for a moment before he glanced at the broadsword.

"**Tis an ordinary sword in another's hands," **Death said as he gazed up at the created sky of the Death Room, the last of the feathers drifting to the ground. **"But in my own… those who lose their lives to this sword, there is fear, but there is no pain. There is death, but no suffering. There is repentance, but no regrets." **

He gazed down to Kid and the young Grim Reaper found himself lost in the blue flames that served as his fatherʼs eyes.

He flinched a bit as the elder Grim Reaperʼs hand reached out, but instead of cold metal, Kid felt his hair being ruffled by a strong, yet worn and calloused hand.

"**I apologize for putting you in danger like that," **He told him, withdrawing his hand and Kid just barely saw what the true form of his father might be (or at least the hand) before it was hidden in armor again. **"I prefer a form of shadows, but I realize that I should have begun in this state. I should have killed Asura the first time with this form."**

His Father only returned to gazing up at the sky and Kid shifted, gazing up at it as well in silence.

"Father…. May I ask you something?" he asked after a moment. He took the silence as an answer after a few moments.

"Why did you not use this form the first time?"

There was silence before a sigh left the elder Grim Reaper. **"I was naive. This form is not my own, simply one that was borrowed and then given after the original owner returned to the Earth. To use Hassan-i-Sabbahʼs power as my own is… different to handle. In words, it is a one-way resonance but without a weapon."**

The armored figure gazed down at the blade in his hand. **"The Broadsword is nothing more than a normal blade, ingrained with the faith that Hassan-i-Sabbah continued to believe in. One day, when the time is right, I will pass this form to you as well."**

The sound of the bell rang out across the room, resounding even farther outside across the forest as well.

"**Canst thou hear the bell, O child of mine?" **He asked as the low but loud noise resounded around them. **"It tolls for destiny's end."**

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**A/n: like I said, it's pretty freakin' rushed. Barely over 1k words and maybe one day I'll come back to this. *Sigh* I'm in college now and I just dont have any time for a long story, but I do have ideas. If you know the Webtoon Ghosts Among the Wildflowers, the next one I have planned is a crossover with that and a more well-known anime, and I did have a Land of the Lustrious and Assassination Classroom one planned, but... like I said. No idea if any of it will get done.**


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